President Biden has approved over a billion dollars in new weapons deals for Israel, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. The package includes $700 million in tank ammo, $500 million in tactical vehicles, and $60 million in mortar rounds. Despite concerns about a potential full-scale invasion into Rafah, Biden proceeded with the deal. However, it's important to note that the weapons included in the package have not been produced yet and may take months to years to be delivered to Israel.
There was speculation about whether this move contradicted Biden's red line regarding Rafah. It's clarified that Israel has not initiated a major ground invasion into Rafah, thus not crossing Biden's red line. The suspension of arms transfers would only occur if such an invasion took place.
While there was a temporary halt on one arms shipment of 3,500 bombs for fighter jets, overall arms supply to Israel remains unchanged. Biden has stated that further offensive weapons would be suspended if Israel were to engage in a major ground invasion of Rafah, which has not happened yet.
Recent discussions between Biden and Netanyahu suggest a temporary pause in Israel's operations in Rafah until further high-level meetings take place. This delay is expected to last until after National Security Advisor Sullivan's visit to Israel, followed by a meeting at the White House between U.S. and Israeli teams to discuss the situation in Rafah.
Overall, the Biden administration aims to navigate the delicate situation in Rafah by buying time through diplomatic engagements and strategic pauses in military actions. The context provided by these developments sheds light on the complexities of arms deals and red lines in the midst of escalating tensions.
